Goalie Campbell helps key success of Stanford women’s soccer

Updated 9:05 am, Thursday, October 9, 2014

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Jane Campbell, the goalkeeper for the third-ranked Stanford women's soccer team, has allowed only two goals this season, ranking her as the nation's top goalie on a Cardinal defense that ranks tops nationally, too. less

Jane Campbell, the goalkeeper for the third-ranked Stanford women's soccer team, has allowed only two goals this season, ranking her as the nation's top goalie on a Cardinal defense that ranks tops nationally, ... more

Photo: Norbert Von Der Groeben/Isiphoto

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Jane Campbell kicks the ball during Stanford's game against Notre Dame. The Cardinal and Irish played to a 0-0 draw after two 10-minute overtime periods.

Jane Campbell kicks the ball during Stanford's game against Notre Dame. The Cardinal and Irish played to a 0-0 draw after two 10-minute overtime periods.

Photo: Jim Shorin

Goalie Campbell helps key success of Stanford women’s soccer

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Both of her parents were Navy fighter pilots, dad being a Blue Angel. Her brother hopes to attend flight school in the Coast Guard.

Jane Campbell never had the urge to fly. Yet the nation’s leading goalkeeper had a spectacular liftoff in a game against Florida this season.

All-America Savannah Jordan, a fellow Georgian and a teammate of Campbell on age-group national teams, stole the ball and charged in. From just outside the 18-yard box, Jordan unloaded a curving bullet toward the upper right corner.

Campbell timed her leap perfectly and knocked it away with her right hand. Stanford won 1-0 in overtime.

Her busiest game was probably the season-opening 1-0 overtime win at North Carolina, Stanford’s first win over the Tar Heels in 13 tries. She made five saves in the first half. Late in the game, North Carolina’s Alex Kimball was on a breakaway, but Campbell closed the angle, dived for the hard smash at close range and actually caught it.

In 12 games, with plenty of help from an excellent back line, the 5-foot-9 sophomore has allowed two goals. She’ll certainly be put to the test when the No. 3 Cardinal visit No. 1 UCLA at 8 p.m. Thursday (televised on Pac-12 Bay Area). Both teams are 10-0-2, 2-0-1 in the conference.

Led by Sam Mewis and her team-high nine goals, the defending national champion Bruins have a 33-match unbeaten streak, seventh longest in NCAA history. Stanford and UCLA have combined to win at least a share of the past 13 conference titles. Last season, UCLA beat Stanford twice, including a third-round game in the NCAA tournament.

The match will allow Campbell to resume her rivalry with her close friend, UCLA keeper Katelyn Rowland. During the FIFA Under-20 World Cup this summer in Canada, Rowland got all the minutes in the net while Campbell watched.

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From the time she was 9 or 10, Campbell wanted to be a goalkeeper. “I could use my hands,” she said. “I liked the thought of it being unique and individualistic.”

She was such a good athlete that her club coaches kept putting her on the field. At 13, though, she became a full-time keeper. At 14, she was invited to join the national team program.

At 17, she was the youngest player in the senior national camp, mingling with the likes of Abby Wambach, Alex Morgan and Hope Solo. “You idolize all of them,” she said. “It’s cool to see them in person.”

Campbell picked Stanford over Virginia and Florida State, to the delight of head coach Paul Ratcliffe. “She has an unbelievable competitive spirit,” he said. “She has a great presence, is a very good shot blocker, and her organizational skills are amazing. Her reflexes and instincts are phenomenal.”

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Florida and North Carolina, along with many other teams, can attest to that.

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